Save your money for something good and enjoyable

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

This one is an unusual contender for exploitation bookings in that it actually has a literate screenplay. In fact, the dialogue is far too convincing for cavemen (but that's another story). And it also carries a message that predates "Planet of the Apes". Roger Corman's direction is certainly efficient – the action scenes are convincingly staged – but lacks the imaginative flair he usually brings to these offerings. On the other hand, production values are reasonably impressive – even if we excuse a wobbly shot of dinosaurs and that all-too-familiar lizard fight footage from "One Million Years B.C." DeKova delivers a strong performance as the rabble- rousing heavy, while the heroine has just enough footage to look decorative – but not enough to slow down the action. Darah Marshall (in her only movie) certainly makes an attractive "blond maiden". Considering the heavy dialogue they have to handle, the rest of the players are fairly capable, although it's a bit of a shock to see Robert Shayne hiding behind a beard as the keeper of the flame. Vaughn is also not up to speed. He looks uncomfortable in his animal skin and his accent seems far too cultured for this setting. On the other hand, production credits, headed by Crosby's fine location photography, are rarely less than proficient.

Teenage Caveman (1958) ** (out of 4) Roger Corman/AIP cheapie about a young caveman (Robert Vaughn) who travels across the evil even after being warned that evil will fall upon him. Across the river he sees dinosaurs and other strange beings but he tries to tell his tribe that it's not all evil. This ultra low budget film, like the above one, is cheaply made but it provides enough entertainment in its short 66-minute running time. Vaughn, while not really good per say, is at least interesting and we also have Jonathan Haze along for the ride. The dino shots were taken from One Million B.C. and a couple other monsters show up from previous Corman films.

Movies about the stone age are - with the honourable exception of Annaud's "Quest of Fire" - usually rather silly. Think of comedies like "Caveman" with Ringo Starr, monster movies like "One Million Years B.C." with Raquel Welch, or the unfortunate "Clan of the Cave Bear" with Daryl Hannah. The much older b/w flick "Teenage Caveman" was a real surprise therefore, remarkably ambitious for a B movie. Young Robert Vaughn, a few years before "The Magnificent Seven", stars as a caveman who is challenging the elders of the tribe by trespassing the forbidden lands beyond the river. In their belief, the cave people must stay near their cave; they shall neither cross the river nor the desert, because their forefathers left the "Word". Vaughn is restless, after his first trip to the forbidden lands he repeatedly says "I still wonder..." and takes a second trip there. The elders decide the penalty for breaking the law twice must be death, and send a hunting party after him. What they all discover in the land beyond the river is however not what the Word of the forefathers said... (oh, it's hard sometimes to write a spoiler-free review and don't tell too much!) "Teenage Caveman" has an unusual philosophical edge to it, asking questions like "why are we here" and "what is beyond our world", and it makes clear that curiosity and restlessness are the driving forces for mankind's progress. Vaughn's Caveman is not satisfied with the answers the elders give him, he says "I still wonder...", and shouldn't we too sometimes? Only annoying point is the monster scenes, as the cheapo lizards (I refuse to call them dinosaurs) seem to be cut in between from different movies.

This film, whose true name is not "Teenage Cave Man" but rather "The Prehistoric World", was released by AIP under said name to exploit the success of its own "I Was a Teenage...." series of films (which were actually produced by Herman Cohen in England). Viewed entirely on its own merits, this little film has a lot to offer, even beyond some of the obvious camp humor.There is some intriguing sci-fi here, most of which I won't give away for fear of *****SPOILERS***** giving away too much, but some of which definately predate and prefigure "Planet of the Apes" as Corman himself points out in his autobio. Robert Vaughn does a good job here, once more showing the strength of performance that should have made him another Robert Stack, rather than another John Saxon. There is a strong anti-establishment subtext in the film which definately places it just ahead of its time in prefiguring the political "message" sci-fi of the late 60s. Ignoring the cheap effects and some of the less accomplished actors in the film may result in a less entertaining viewing, but may reveal a film of greater depth than your typical saturday morning b.